Friday, May 06, 2011

Spring Clean Up at NVRPA Headquarters

Yesterday was the annual clean up day at the Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority Headquarters. It was a beautiful spring day and everyone was working together to clean out old stuff that was not needed and spruce up the grounds with trimming and mulching and much more. It was a great team effort! And we all shared a great lunch together as well.

Blythe Russian, Superintendent of Operations wrote the following in an e-mail to Headquarters and Central Maintenance staff. She captured the best of the day.

Thanks to everyone who rolled up their sleeves and pitched in yesterday for the most successful Cinco de Mayo Cleanup yet! With a heavy task list, everyone truly performed miracles on the inside and outside of the building! Take a few minutes to see the handy work of your co-workers today. A special thanks to Central Maintenance for their back breaking work on the trees and trash removal- who knew we could have THAT MUCH to throw away!! We could NOT have done it without you!

I hope everyone had as much fun as I did working alongside different people and doing projects outside our normal comfort zone. Here are are few "superlatives" from yesterday that I hope you enjoy:

Best Mulcher- Becky Reynaldo (she was a non-stop machine with those HUGE bags and her scissors!)

Best Box Mover- David Zickafoose tied with Jake Bumbrey and Casey Pittrizzi

Best Thrower Awayer- Kathy Brooks and Edna Scott (we took no prisoners!)

Best Makeover- the closet by the board room- you can walk in, have a picnic, do a dance (I saw you, Edna) and it is even ready for MORE stuff- put away neatly, please!!

Best Coordinator of the Throwing Away- Charlie Anderson

Best Mulch Mover- Chris Pauley (150 bags, to be exact)- it was a close race with Paul Gilbert who also put a big dent in that pile!

Best Griller- Bobby Clark (and the best pulled chicken cooker!) What would we do without you?

Best Awards Room Cleaner- Sue O'Reilly and Todd Hafner (if you haven't taken a look, you will be pleasantly surprised!

Best Attitude- Jenny Hofler (even when her area was threatened by snakes, she powered on!)

Best Enforcer of Personal Protective Equipment- Derric Bolton (he HAD to- its his job!)

Best Chicken- Getters- Susan Chidakel and Linda Butterworth- who knew there could be that funny of a story just getting a bucket of chicken:)

Best Dessert-maker- Heidi Bates (requests for more cherry cheesecake and the hornets nest have been submitted)

For those of you that didn't get a superlative, you still deserve a big pat on your back for the great work you did yesterday, your positive attitude, and your delicious cooking (or buying of food) skills! Make sure to stretch tonight because tomorrow will be the big day when all of those new muscles you found yesterday will be screaming!

Thank you for bringing the delicious food and for all of your hard work! It is truly appreciated! I think we need to institute a Cinco de Diciembre to continue our hard work on the inside of this building....

About Me

I am the Executive Director of NOVA Parks (Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority). Prior to that, I was the President of the Northern Virginia Conservation Trust. NOVA Parks is a regional park system made up of three Counties and three Cities in Northern Virginia (Arlington, Fairfax and Loudoun Counties, and the Cities of Alexandria, Fairfax and Falls Church). NVRPA operates 30+ park and owns over 11,000 acres.
My family moved to Fairfax County when I was 1, so I am close to a native. I have a bachlors degree from St. Andrews University in N.C. and a masters degree from George Mason University. I also have a Certificate of Professional Development from the Wharton School of Business at UPA. I served on the Board of Regents for the NRPA Revenue Development and Management School, and am on the Board of Directors for Visit Fairfax.I am an Executive in Residense at George Mason University for their Recreation Management Program.
I also published two books one on leadership and the Civil War called "Lead Like a General." The other book is "High Performance Agencies: The Entrepreneurial Model for Public Park, Recreation and Tourism Organizations."